Market breaks 46000-point mark, hits 8-month high

LAHORE - Pakistan Stock Exchange, which was seeing negative sentiments in recent past due to issues like Panama scandal, macro imbalance and inclusion of Pakistan in Terror-Financing list by FATF, rose to eight-month high and also crossed 46,000-point mark after 160 sessions on Tuesday.

KSE 100-share index closed positive for the fifth straight session yesterday, depicting revival of investors’ confidence after currency devaluation of 9 percent in last four months and expected resolution of declining foreign exchange reserves through intake of friendly loans and amnesty scheme. The market index closed 272 points up at 46,013 points.

Fauji Fertilizer company surged 4 percent, as BoD of the company approved investment of USD39m in Thar Energy Limited (TEL). Overall contribution of fertilizer sector remained 72 points to the index, followed by E&Ps (70 points) and automobile assemblers (45 points).

Market participation in terms of volumes traded improved by 8 percent. Similarly, value went up by 6 percent.